Mom walks in on man engaging in sex act with teen son in park bathroom, cops say

A mom with a “bad feeling” walked into a Coral Springs park bathroom to find a 38-year-old man engaging in illegal sex acts with her teen son, according to police.

Now, Roberto Vallejo, of Margate, is charged with lewd and lascivious battery on a victim over 12 and under 16, records show. The Coral Springs News reached out to Vallejo’s attorney June 10 but did not immediately receive a response.

The mom told police that her 15-year-old son asked her to drop him off at Tall Cypress Natural Area on June 3 so he could take nature photos, according to an arrest affidavit. She then went to Publix before heading back to the park, telling her son that she was ready to pick him up, according to police.

While she was waiting, she said she saw a man later identified as Vallejo walk inside the park bathroom. She called her son and he didn’t pick up, but he texted her asking her to wait another 20 minutes, police said.

She said she kept calling him, to no response, and she got a “bad feeling,” according to the affidavit. She decided to go into the bathroom, and that’s when she saw her son and Vallejo in a single stall, appearing to be engaging in sex acts, police said.

She called out her son’s name and Vallejo was spooked, running out of the bathroom as she tried to grab him, the report says. She snapped a picture of his license plate, leading police to Vallejo’s identity, according to investigators.

The teen told police that while he was at the park, he got an ad on TikTok for a primarily gay, map-based hookup app, and when he went on the app, he saw a user on the map near him. He recounted he walked into the park bathroom, then Vallejo walked in after him, gave him a look and asked how old he was, the boy told officers.

The teen reportedly told Vallejo he was 18, but believing a victim to be 18 isn’t a valid defense for an accused sexual offender under Florida law.

Officers found Vallejo on June 5, at which point he denied any sexual activity between himself and the teen. He was booked in jail and later bonded out, pleading not guilty.